Indonesia is the largest archipelago in the world (1.8 million km2 of land, 3.1 million km2 of sea, plus a 200 miles Exclusive Economic Zone covering some 2.7 million km2). Its population, ranking number four on the world list, amounts to more than 216 million people. Marine related programmes are given a high priority in Indonesia. During the last two decades the government has carried out a concerted effort in marine capacity building through bilateral, regional and international co-operation. This effort included increasing man-power development, expanding and improving research facilities, establishing a national marine data centre, improving co-operation within the Indonesian marine science community, and international co-operation. The bilateral agreement with The Netherlands for the implementation of the Snellius II Programme (1982-1987) laid the intellectual basis for the Indonesian marine science capability. The necessary research vessels were obtained through bilateral cooperation with France and Norway. At present Indonesia operates: (1) a network of tide gauges and current meter stations, (2) two satellite ground stations, (3) tropical radar wind profiling stations, (4) a network of marine pollution stations, (5) eight ocean-going, coastal and fisheries research vessels, and (6) twelve Seawatch monitoring buoys. The present commitment to maritime affairs is reflected in the establishment of a new Ministry for Maritime Exploration and Fisheries in which are brought together at a policy making and co-ordinating level, most aspects of sustainable use of Indonesia’s ocean space. It is expected that, in the near future, Indonesia will play a major role in marine affairs in the western Pacific region. This paper provides a review of Indonesian experience in developing a national marine capability and the catalysing role of the Snellius II Programme in this.